Our Yesterday's Escape (University Series #6)

15

"You took so much care of me that night. Are you sure you don't like me? Not even a bit?" 

I scratched the side of my face and looked away, letting out a frustrated sigh. This was what I hated the most. How vulnerable some people were, liking the taste of simple care. Pakitaan mo ng kaunting pakialam, mahuhulog na. 

"I take care of everyone I fuck with," I told her with no emotion on my face and just coldly stared at her. "You're not special."

My face moved to the side when she slapped me so hard I couldn't hear for a second. I poked my tongue on the insides of my cheek to see if it will hurt. I winced and massaged my jaw, getting more annoyed. 

I stood up and got my things so I could go to another table where I wouldn't get distracted while studying. When I was about to walk, I met a pair of familiar eyes. She even tried to avoid me by acting like she didn't see me. Too late. I already moved the chair so I could sit in front of her. 

"Pahiram, ah..." I got her iced americano and put it on my cheek to minimize the swelling. Iced americano. Her usual order. I somehow already memorized her orders. I assumed she was always in my coffee shop, but we had never seen each other here before for some reason. 

"What did you do?" She was finally asking me questions. Did she become interested in my life o gusto niya lang talaga makichismis sa away kanina? 

"She asked me if we could date, and I said 'no, it was just a one-night stand for me,' then she slapped me and walked out. End of a tragic story." I lied. That wasn't how the conversation went, but I didn't have to go into details. She wouldn't be interested in knowing how I coldly refused the woman and how annoyed I got. 

I started studying, which I was supposed to do kanina pa. I just got distracted by two women. One slapped me in the face, and the other one was talking to me like I was the last one on her list of favorite people. Oh, I might not even be on the list. 

I took my studies more seriously when I went to law school. I started changing my study habits to remember things better for the recitation. I started color-coding and putting post-it notes on the important pages. Giving up on my readings was never an option if I didn't want to get roasted the next class. Sometimes, I would get lucky for not being called on cases I only read the digest of. Not every day was my lucky day. I needed to work harder. Smarter. 

My phone beeped again. Arman asked if I wanted to go to a house party with them. Funny how I used to host them before by renting available houses but now, it was so hard to convince me to go. 

[Hindi ka talaga pupunta, bro?] 

"No, I won't attend the party tonight. I'm on a date." I gave Kierra a wink, and she acted so disgusted, which made me laugh a bit. 

[Hinahanap ka ng ex-fling mo, bro! Kami pa kinukulit! She's so mad and wants to break things. Nasaan ka ba?] 

"My ex-fling? Which one?" Tumayo ako at naglakad paalis para hindi marinig ni Kierra ang pinag-uusapan namin.